East Village New York was once the home of Warhol and the Velvet Underground – no better captured than by Lou Reed in ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ – but in the early 90’s the East Village is dead. A struggling group of Bohemians attempt to survive and produce art but the spectre of HIV hovers, disease withers and loved ones are taken from them. This is the setting for Jonathan Larson’s rock opera Rent, that comes to the Hayes Theatre.
Larson grew up listening to bands like The Who and musical greats like Sondheim. His creative vision was to meld the two. Depressed that most current musicals still sounded like Oklahoma circa 1943, Rent was his attempt to blend the two. It ended up playing for 13 years on Broadway, which would be every composer’s dream, except that Larson collapsed and died of an aortic aneurysm the morning of the first performance. It would only make the message of the show more poignant – embrace the moment, there is ‘no day but today’, and celebrate life in all its striking diversity.
For this Hayes Theatre production, director Shaun Rennie and musical director Andrew Worboys have assembled an eclectic cast of seasoned performers and newcomers, including Loren Hunter (Strictly Ballroom), Stephen Madsen (Heathers the Musical), Laura Bunting (The Voice, Wicked), Casey Donovan (The Sapphires) and musical theatre debutant Linden Furnell. Like its inspiration, Puccini’s La Boheme, these are characters quick to fall in love but emotionally restrained in the face of disease and loss. (GW)
Until Nov 1, various show times. Hayes Theatre, 19 Greenknowe Ave, Potts Point. $59-$70. Tickets & info: hayestheatre.com.au or 0280657337.
